On Reference Layer and Scaled Reference Layer Offset Parameters for Inter-Layer Prediction in Scalable Video Coding

ABSTRACT

A process for determining the selection of filters and input samples is provided for scalable video coding. The process provides for re-sampling using video data obtained from an encoder or decoder process of a base layer (BL) in a multi-layer system to improve quality in Scalable High Efficiency Video Coding (SHVC). In order to provide better alignment between layers, it is proposed that reference layer offset adjustment parameters be signaled.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This Application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e) from earlier filed U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/006,020 filed on May 30, 2014 and United States Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/010,433 filed on Jun. 10, 2014, both of which are incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a sampling filter process for scalable video coding. More specifically, the present invention relates to re-sampling using video data obtained from an encoder or decoder process, where the encoder or decoder process can be MPEG-4 Advanced Video Coding (AVC) or High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC). Further, the present invention specifically relates to Scalable HEVC (SHVC) that includes a two layer video coding system.

BACKGROUND

Scalable video coding (SVC) refers to video coding in which a base layer (BL), sometimes referred to as a reference layer, and one or more scalable enhancement layers (EL) are used. For SVC, the base layer can carry video data with a base level of quality. The one or more enhancement layers can carry additional video data to support higher spatial, temporal, and/or signal-to-noise SNR levels. Enhancement layers may be defined relative to a previously coded layer.

The base layer and enhancement layers can have different resolutions. Upsampling filtering, sometimes referred to as resampling filtering, may be applied to the base layer in order to match a spatial aspect ratio or resolution of an enhancement layer. This process may be called spatial scalability. An upsampling filter set can be applied to the base layer, and one filter can be chosen from the set based on a phase (sometimes referred to as a fractional pixel shift). The phase may be calculated based on the ratio between base layer and enhancement layer picture resolutions.

SUMMARY

Embodiments of the present invention provide methods, devices and systems for the upsampling process from BL resolution to EL resolution to implement the upsampling of FIG. 2. The upsampling process of embodiments of the present invention includes three separate modules, a first module to select input samples from the BL video signal, a second module to select a filter for filtering the samples, and a third module using phase filtering to filter the input samples to recreate video that approximates the EL resolution video. The filters of the third module can be selected from a set of fixed filters each with different phase. In these modules, the selection of the input samples and filters for generating the output samples are determined based upon a mapping between the EL sample positions and the corresponding BL sample positions. The embodiments included herein are related to the mapping or computation between the EL and the BL sample positions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Further details of the present invention are explained with the help of the attached drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of components in a scalable video coding system with two layers;

FIG. 2 illustrates an upsampling process that can be used to convert the base layer data to the full resolution layer data for FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 shows a block diagram of components for implementing the upsampling process of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 shows components of the select filter module and the filters, where the filters are selected from fixed or adaptive filters to apply a desired phase shift;

FIGS. 5A, 5B, and 5C are a simplified flow chart showing the process for determining the reference layer location based upon the syntax used in a method for coding scalable video.

FIG. 6 is a simplified block diagram that illustrates an example video coding system.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

An example of a scalable video coding system using two layers is shown in FIG. 1. In the system of FIG. 1, one of the two layers is the Base Layer (BL) where a BL video is encoded in an Encoder E0, labeled 100, and decoded in a decoder D0, labeled 102, to produce a base layer video output BL out. The BL video is typically at a lower quality than the remaining layers, such as the Full Resolution (FR) layer that receives an input FR (y). The FR layer includes an encoder E1, labeled 104, and a decoder D1, labeled 106. In encoding in encoder E1 104 of the full resolution video, cross-layer (CL) information from the BL encoder 100 is used to produce enhancement layer (EL) information. The corresponding EL bitstream of the full resolution layer is then decoded in decoder D1 106 using the CL information from decoder D0 102 of the BL to output full resolution video, FR out. By using CL information in a scalable video coding system, the encoded information can be transmitted more efficiently in the EL than if the FR was encoded independently without the CL information. An example of coding that can use two layers shown in FIG. 1 includes video coding using AVC and the Scalable Video Coding (SVC) extension of AVC, respectively. Another example that can use two layer coding is HEVC.

FIG. 1 further shows block 108 with a down-arrow r illustrating a resolution reduction from the FR to the BL to illustrate that the BL can be created by a downsampling of the FR layer data. Although a downsampling is shown by the arrow r of block 108 FIG. 1, the BL can be independently created without the downsampling process. Overall, the down arrow of block 108 illustrates that in spatial scalability, the base layer BL is typically at a lower spatial resolution than the full resolution FR layer. For example, when r=2 and the FR resolution is 3840×2160, the corresponding BL resolution is 1920×1080.

The cross-layer CL information provided from the BL to the FR layer shown in FIG. 1 illustrates that the CL information can be used in the coding of the FR video in the EL. In one example, the CL information includes pixel information derived from the encoding and decoding process of the BL. Examples of BL encoding and decoding are AVC and HEVC. Because the BL pictures are at a different spatial resolution than the FR pictures, a BL picture needs to be upsampled (or re-sampled) back to the FR picture resolution in order to generate a suitable prediction for the FR picture.

FIG. 2 illustrates an upsampling process in block 200 of data from the BL layer to the EL. The components of the upsampling block 200 can be included in either or both of the encoder E1 104 and the decoder D1 106 of the EL of the video coding system of FIG. 1. The BL data at resolution x that is input into upsampling block 200 in FIG. 2 is derived from one or more of the encoding and decoding processes of the BL. A BL picture is upsampled using the up-arrow r process of block 200 to generate the EL resolution output y′ that can be used as a basis for prediction of the original FR input y.

The upsampling block 200 works by interpolating from the BL data to recreate what is modified from the FR data. For instance, if every other pixel is dropped from the FR in block 108 to create the lower resolution BL data, the dropped pixels can be recreated using the upsampling block 200 by interpolation or other techniques to generate the EL resolution output y′ from upsampling block 200. The data y′ is then used to make encoding and decoding of the EL data more efficient.

I. Overview of Upsampling Circuitry

FIG. 3 shows a general block diagram for implementing an upsampling process of FIG. 2 for embodiments of the present invention. The upsampling or re-sampling process can be determined to minimize an error E (e.g. mean-squared error) between the upsampled data y′ and the full resolution data y. The system of FIG. 3 includes a select input samples module 300 that samples an input video signal. The system further includes a select filter module 302 to select a filter from the subsequent filter input samples module 304 to upsample the selected input samples from module 300.

In module 300, a set of input samples in a video signal xis first selected. In general, the samples can be a two-dimensional subset of samples in x, and a two-dimensional filter can be applied to the samples. The module 302 receives the data samples in x from module 300 and identifies the position of each sample from the data it receives, enabling module 302 to select an appropriate filter to direct the samples toward a subsequent filter module 304. The filter in module 304 is selected to filter the input samples, where the selected filter is chosen or configured to have a phase corresponding to the particular output sample location desired.

The filter input samples module 304 can include separate row and column filters. The selection of filters is represented herein as filters h[n; p], where the filters can be separable along each row or column, and p denotes a phase index selection for the filter. The output of the filtering process using the selected filter h[n;p] on the selected input samples produces output value y′.

FIG. 4 shows details of components for the select sample module 302 of FIG. 3 (labeled 302 a in FIG. 4) and the filters module 304 of FIG. 3 (labeled 304 a in FIG. 4) for a system with fixed filters. For separable filtering the input samples can be along a row or column of data. To supply a set of input samples from select input samples module 300, the select filter module 302 a includes a select control 400 that identifies the input samples x[m] and provides a signal to a selector 402 that directs them through the selector 402 to a desired filter. The filter module 304 a then includes the different filters h[n;p] that can be applied to the input samples, where the filter phase can be chosen among P phases from each row or column element depending on the output sample m desired. As shown, the selector 402 of module 302 a directs the input samples to a desired column or row filter in 304 a based on the “Filter (n) SEL” signal from select control 400. A separate select control 400 signal “Phase (p) SEL” selects the appropriate filter phase p for each of the row or column elements. The filter module 304 a output produces the output y′[n].

In FIG. 4, the outputs from individual filter components h[n;p] are shown added “+” to produce the output y′[n]. This illustrates that each box, e.g. h[0;p], represents one coefficient or number in a filter with phase p. Therefore, the filter with phase p is represented by all n+1 numbers in h[0,p], . . . , h[n;p]. This is the filter that is applied to the selected input samples to produce an output value y′[n], for example, y′[0]=h[0,p]*x[0]+h[1,p]*x[1]+ . . . +h[n,p]*x[n], requiring the addition function “+” as illustrated. As an alternative to adding in FIG. 4, the “+” could be replaced with a solid connection and the output y′[n] would be selected from one output of a bank of P filters representing the p phases, with the boxes h[n:p] in module 304a relabeled, for example, as h[n;0], h[n,1], . . . , h[n,p-1] and now each box would have all the filter coefficients needed to form y′[n] without the addition element required.

II. Existing Syntax for Signaling Scaled Reference Layer Offsets

In order to accommodate for offset and phase shift differences between the BL and EL samples, phase offset adjustment parameters can be signaled to achieve the desired correspondence between the layers. Let a sample location relative to the top-left sample in the current EL picture be (xP, yP), and a sample location in the BL reference layer in units of 1/16-th sample relative to the top-left sample of the BL be (xRef16, yRef16). In J. Chen, J. Boyce, Y. Ye, M. Hannuksela, G. Sullivan, Y. Wang, “High efficiency video coding (HEVC) scalable extension Draft 5,” JCTVC-P1008_v4, January 2014, the relationship between (xRef16, yRef16) and (xP, yP) is given as follows:

xRef16=(((xP-offsetX) * ScaleFactorX+addX+(1<<11))>>12)-(phaseX<<2)

yRef16=(((yP-offsetY) * ScaleFactorY+addY+(1<<11))>>12)-(phaseY<<2)

The sample position (xRef16, yRef16) is used to select the input samples and the filters used in computing the output sample values as specified in J. Chen, J. Boyce, Y. Ye, M. Hannuksela, G. Sullivan, Y. Wang, “High efficiency video coding (HEVC) scalable extension Draft 5 ” JCTVC-P1008_v4, January 2014.

The variables offsetX, addX, offsetY, and addY specify scaled reference layer offset and phase parameters in the horizontal and vertical directions, variables phaseX and phaseY specify reference layer phase offset parameters in the horizontal and vertical directions, and variables ScaleFactorX and ScaleFactorY are computed based on the ratio of the reference layer to the scaled reference layer width and height. These variables are computed based upon phase offset parameters specified in J. Chen, J. Boyce, Y. Ye, M. Hannuksela, G. Sullivan, Y. Wang, “High efficiency video coding (HEVC) scalable extension Draft 5,” JCTIVC-P1008_v4, January 2014. In particular, the offset parameters offsetX and offsetY are computed as:

offsetX=ScaledRefLayerLeftOffset/((cIdx==0) ? 1 : SubWidthC)

offsetY=ScaledRefLayerTopOffset/((cIdx==0) ? 1 : SubHeightC) where variable cIdx specifies the color component index and the values SubWidthC and SubHeightC are specified depending on the chroma format sampling structure and ScaledRefLayerLeftOffset=scaled_ref_layer_left_offset[rLId]<<1 ScaledRefLayerTopOffset=scaled_ref_layer_top_offset[rLId]<<1 ScaledRefLayerRightOffset=scaled_ref_layer_right_offset[rLId]<<1 ScaledRefLayerBottomOffset=scaled_ref_layer_bottom_offset[rLId]<<1 where rLId specifies the scaled reference layer picture Id. The variables ScaledRefLayerLeftOffset, ScaledRefLayerTopOffset, ScaledRefLayerRightOffset, and ScaledRefLayerBottomOffset specify offsets in two pixel unit resolution based on the values of the syntax elements scaled_ref_layer_left offset[rLId], scaled_ref_layer_top_offset[rLId], scaled_ref_layer_right_offset[rLId], and scaled_ref_layer_bottom_offset[rLId].

In U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/661,867, (hereinafter referred to as the “'215”) incorporated by reference in its entirety, syntax elements for scaled reference layer offsets are included in the bitstream syntax at the PPS level (PPS multilayer extension) as shown in Table 1.

TABLE 1 Existing syntax for signaling offsets at PPS multilayer extension. Descriptor pps_multilayer_extension( ) { num_scaled_ref_layer_offsets ue(v) for( i = 0; i < num_scaled_ref_layer_offsets; i++) { scaled_ref_layer_id[ i ] u(6) scaled_ref_layer_left_offset[ scaled_ref_layer_id[ i ] ] se(v) scaled_ref_layer_top_offset[ scaled_ref_layer_id[ i ] ] se(v) scaled_ref_layer_right_offset[ scaled_ref_layer_id[ i ] ] se(v) scaled_ref_layer_bottom_offset[ scaled_ref_layer_id[ i ] ] se(v) scaled_ref_layer_left_phase[ scaled_ref_layer_id[ i ] ] se(v) scaled_ref_layer_top_phase[ scaled_ref_layer_id[ i ] ] se(v) ref_layer_horizontal_delta[ scaled_ref_layer_id[ i ] ] se(v) ref_layer_vertical_delta[ scaled_ref_layer_id[ i ] ] se(v) ref_layer_horizontal_delta_chroma [ scaled_ref_layer_id[ i ] ] ue(v) ref_layer_vertical_delta_chroma [ scaled_ref_layer_id[ i ] ] ue(v) } scaled_ref_layer_left_phase_chroma ue(v) scaled_ref_layer_top_phase_chroma ue(v) }

In Table 1, num_scaled_ref_layer_offsets indicates the number of sets of scaled reference layer offset parameters for which offsets are signaled, and scaled_ref_layer_id[i] specifies the nuh_layer_id_value of the associated inter-layer picture for which offsets are specified.

In J. Chen, J. Boyce, Y. Ye, M. Hannuksela, G. Sullivan, Y. Wang, “High efficiency video coding (HEVC) scalable extension Draft 5,” JCTVC-P1008_v4, January 2014, the syntax elements are defined as follows:

scaled_ref_layer_left_offset[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] specifies the horizontal offset between the top-left luma sample of the associated inter-layer picture with nuh_layer_id equal to scaled_ref_layer_id[i] and the top-left luma sample of the current picture in units of two luma samples. When not present, the value of scaled_ref_layer_left_offset[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] is inferred to be equal to 0.

scaled_ref_layer_top_offset[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] specifies the vertical offset between the top-left luma sample of the associated inter-layer picture with nuh_layer_id equal to scaled_ref_layer_id[i] and the top-left luma sample of the current picture in units of two luma samples. When not present, the value of scaled_ref_layer_top offset[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] is inferred to be equal to 0.

scaled_ref_layer_right_offset[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] specifies the horizontal offset between the bottom-right luma sample of the associated inter-layer picture with nuh_layer_id equal to scaled_ref_layer_id[i] and the bottom-right luma sample of the current picture in units of two luma samples. When not present, the value of scaled_ref_layer_right_offset[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] is inferred to be equal to 0.

scaled_ref_layer_bottom_offset[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] specifies the vertical offset between the bottom-right luma sample of the associated inter-layer picture with nuh_layer_id equal to scaled_ref_layer_id[i] and the bottom-right luma sample of the current picture in units of two luma samples. When not present, the value of scaled_ref_layer_bottom_offset[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] is inferred to be equal to 0.

In '215, additional offsets are signaled to increase the resolution for proper BL and EL alignment at the PPS level in order to accommodate other applications and operations such as interlace/progressive scalability and pan and scan. The following additional phase offset adjustment parameters in Table 1 are signaled.

scaled_ref_layer_left_phase[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] specifies the horizontal luma offset between nuh_layer_id equal to scaled_ref_layer_id[i] and the current picture in units of ½ luma samples. This is a signed value between −2 to +2. When not present, the value of scaled_ref_layer_left_phase[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] is inferred to be equal to 0.

scaled_ref_layer_top_phase[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] specifies the vertical luma offset between nuh_layer_id equal to scaled_ref_layer_id[i] and the current picture in units of ½ luma samples. This is a signed value between −2 to +2. When not present, the value of scaled_ref_layer_top_phase[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] is inferred to be equal to 0.

ref_layer_horizontal_delta[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] specifies the horizontal luma offset between nuh_layer_id equal to scaled_ref_layer_id[i] and the current picture in units of ⅛ luma samples. This is a signed value between −8 to 8. When not present, the value of ref_layer_horizontal_delta[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] is inferred to be equal to 0.

ref_layer_vertical_delta[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] specifies the vertical luma offset between nuh_layer_id equal to scaled_ref_layer_id[i] and the current picture in units of ⅛ luma samples. This is a signed value between −8 to +8. When not present, the value of ref_layer_vertical_delta[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] is inferred to be equal to 0.

ref_layer_horizontal_delta_chroma[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] specifies the horizontal offset between the chroma samples and luma samples in nuh_layer_id equal to scaled_ref_layer_id[i] in units of ¼ luma samples. This is an unsigned value between 0 to 4. When not present, the value of ref_layer_horizontal_delta_chroma[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] is inferred to be equal to 2.

ref_layer_vertical_delta_chroma[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] specifies the vertical offset between the chroma samples and luma samples in nuh_layer_id equal to scaled_ref_layer_id[i] in units of ¼ luma samples. This is an unsigned value between 0 to 4. When not present, the value of ref_layer_vertical_delta chroma[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] is inferred to be equal to 2.

scaled_ref_layer_left_phase_chroma specifies the horizontal chroma offset relative to luma in units of ¼ luma samples. This is an unsigned value between 0 to 4. When not present, the value of scaled_ref_layer_left_phase_chroma is inferred to be equal to 2.

scaled_ref_layer_top_phase_chroma specifies the vertical chroma offset relative to luma in units of ¼ luma samples. This is an unsigned value between 0 to 4. When not present, the value of scaled_ref_layer_top_phase_chroma is inferred to be equal to 2.

The additional syntax elements are used to provide finer alignment between the layers. One example of the use of the syntax is as follows:

ScaledRefLayerLeftPhase=scaled_ref_layer_left_phase[rLId]

ScaledRefLayerTopPhase=scaled_ref_layer_top_phase[rLId]

RefLayerHorizontalDelta=ref_layer_horizontal_delta[rLId]

RefLayerVerticalDelta=ref_layer_vertical_delta[rLId]

RefLayerHorizontalDeltaChroma=ref_layer_horizontal_delta_chroma[rLId]

RefLayerVerticalDeltaChroma=ref_layer_vertical_delta_chroma[rLId]

phaseX=(cldx==0) ? (ScaledRefLayerLeftPhase <<2): (ScaledRefLayerLeftPhase <<1+scaled_ref_layer_left_phase _chroma)

phaseY=(cldx==0) ? (ScaledRefLayerTopPhase <<2): (ScaledRefLayerTopPhase <<1+scaled_ref_layer_top_phase_chroma)

deltaX=(cldx==0) ? (RefLayerHorizontalDelta <<1): (RefLayerHorizontalDelta+RefLayerHorizontalDeltaChroma <<1)

deltaY=(cldx==0) ? (RefLayerVerticalDelta <<1): (RefLayerVerticalDelta+RefLayerVerticalDeltaChroma <<1)

addX=(ScaleFactorX * phaseX+4) >>3

addY=(ScaleFactorY * phaseY+4) >>3

xRef16=(((xP-offsetX) * ScaleFactorX+addX+(1 <<11)) >>12)-deltaX

yRef16=(((yP-offsetY) * ScaleFactorY+addY+(1 <<11)) >>12)-deltaY

The scaled reference layer phase offset parameters scaled_ref_layer_left_phase, scaled_ref_layer_left_phase_chroma, scaled_ref_layer_top_phase, and scaled_ref_layer_top_phase_chroma provide additional independent finer level or resolution over the previous scaled reference layer phase offset parameters, e.g. scaled_ref_layer_left_offset and scaled_ref_layer_top_offset. In addition, the reference layer phase offset parameters ref_layer_horizontal_delta, ref_layer_vertical_delta, ref_layer_horizontal_delta_chroma and ref_layer_vertical_delta_chroma provide finer reference layer phase offset resolution.

III. Embodiments Including Syntax for Signaling Scaled Reference Layer and Reference Layer Offsets

An alternative approach to specify the alignment and offset between layers is given using the syntax elements in Table 2. The syntax disclosed herein provides flexibility and options in signaling offsets for alignment.

TABLE 2 Proposed syntax for signaling offsets at PPS multilayer extension. Descriptor pps_multilayer_extension( ) { inter_view_mv_vert_constraint_flag u(1) num_scaled_ref_layer_offsets ue(v) for( i = 0; i < num_scaled_ref_layer_offsets; i++) { scaled_ref_layer_id[ i ] u(6) scaled_ref_layer_left_offset[ scaled_ref_layer_id[ i ] ] se(v) scaled_ref_layer_top_offset[ scaled_ref_layer_id[ i ] ] se(v) scaled_ref_layer_right_offset[ scaled_ref_layer_id[ i ] ] se(v) scaled_ref_layer_bottom_offset[ scaled_ref_layer_id[ i ] ] se(v) scaled_ref_layer_left_phase[ scaled_ref_layer_id[ i ] ] u(1) scaled_ref_layer_top_phase[ scaled_ref_layer_id[ i ] ] u(1) } num_ref_layer_offsets ue(v) for( i = 0; i < num_ref_layer_offsets; i++) { ref_layer_id[ i ] u(6) ref_layer_left_offset[ ref_layer_id[ i ] ] se(v) ref_layer_top_offset[ ref_layer_id[ i ] ] se(v) ref_layer_right_offset[ ref_layer_id[ i ] ] se(v) ref_layer_bottom_offset[ ref_layer_id[ i ] ] se(v) ref_layer_horizontal_phase[ ref_layer_id[ i ] ] u(1) ref_layer_vertical_phase[ ref_layer_id[ i ] ] u(1) ref_layer_horizontal_chroma_position[ref_layer_id[ i ] ] u(2) ref_layer_vertical_chroma_position[ref_layer_id[ i ] ] u(2) } scaled_ref_layer_left_phase_chroma_position u(2) scaled_ref_layer_top_phase_chroma_position u(2) }

In Table 2, num_scaled_ref_layer_offsets indicates the number of sets of scaled reference layer offset parameters for which offsets are signaled, scaled_ref_layer_id[i] (srLId) specifies the nuh_layer_id value of the associated inter-layer picture for which scaled reference layer offsets are specified, num_ref_layer_offsets indicates the number of sets of reference layer offset parameters for which offsets are signaled, and ref_layer_id[i] (rLId) specifies the nuh_layer_id value of the associated inter-layer picture for which reference layer offsets are specified.

The scaled reference layer and reference layer offsets are specified as follows for the decoded pictures, where SubWidthC and SubHeightC represent scaled reference layer chroma subsampling parameters in the horizontal and vertical directions, respectively (e.g. SubWidthC=SubHeightC=2 for 4:2:0 chroma sampling), and RefLayerSubWidthC and RefLayerSubHeightC represent reference layer chroma subsampling parameters in the horizontal and vertical directions, respectively (e.g. RefLayerSubWidthC=RefLayerSubHeightC=2 for 4:2:0 chroma sampling):

scaled_ref_layer_left_offset[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] specifies the horizontal offset between the top-left luma sample of the associated inter-layer picture with nuh_layer_id equal to scaled_ref_layer_id[i] and the top-left luma sample of the current picture in units of SubWidthC luma samples. When not present, the value of scaled_ref_layer_left_offset[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] is inferred to be equal to 0.

scaled_ref_layer_top_offset[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] specifies the vertical offset between the top-left luma sample of the associated inter-layer picture with nuh_layer_id equal to scaled_ref_layer_id[i] and the top-left luma sample of the current picture in units of SubHeightC luma samples. When not present, the value of scaled_ref_layer_top_offset[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] is inferred to be equal to 0.

scaled_ref_layer_right_offset[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] specifies the horizontal offset between the bottom-right luma sample of the associated inter-layer picture with nuh_layer_id equal to scaled_ref_layer_id[i] and the bottom-right luma sample of the current picture in units of SubWidthC luma samples. When not present, the value of scaled_ref_layer_right_offset[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] is inferred to be equal to 0.

scaled_ref_layer_bottom_offset[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] specifies the vertical offset between the bottom-right luma sample of the associated inter-layer picture with nuh_layer_id equal to scaled_ref_layer_id[i] and the bottom-right luma sample of the current picture in units of SubHeightC luma samples. When not present, the value of scaled_ref_layer_bottom_offset[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] is inferred to be equal to 0.

scaled_ref_layer_left_scaled_ref_layer_id[i] specifies the horizontal luma offset between nuh_layer_id equal to scaled_ref_layer_id[i] and the current picture in units of ½ luma samples. When this flag is not present, the value of scaled_ref_layer_left_phase[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] is inferred to be equal to 0.

scaled_ref_layer_top_phase[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] specifies the vertical luma offset between nuh_layer_id equal to scaled_ref_layer_id[i] and the current picture in units of ½ luma samples. When this flag is not present, the value of scaled_ref_layer_top_phase[scaled_ref_layer_id[i]] is inferred to be equal to 0.

ref_layer_left_ref_offset[ref_layer_id[i]] specifies the horizontal offset between the top-left luma sample of the reference region on the reference picture with nuh_layer_id equal to ref_layer_id[i] and the top-left luma sample of the reference picture in units of RefLayerSubWidthC luma samples. When not present, the value of ref_layer_left_offset[ref_layer_id[i]] is inferred to be equal to 0.

ref_layer_top_offset[ref_layer_id[i]] specifies the vertical offset between the top-left luma sample of the reference region on the reference picture with nuh_layer_id equal to ref_layer_id[i] and the top-left luma sample of the reference picture in units of RefLayerSubHeightC luma samples. When not present, the value of ref_layer_top_offset[ref_layer_id[i]] is inferred to be equal to 0.

ref_layer_right_offset[ref_layer_id[i]] specifies the horizontal offset between the bottom-right luma sample of the reference region on the reference picture with nuh_layer_id equal to ref_layer_id[i] and the bottom-right luma sample of the reference picture in units of RefLayerSubWidthC luma samples. When not present, the value of ref_layer_right_offset[ref_layer_id[i]] is inferred to be equal to 0.

ref_layer_bottom_offset[ref_layer_id[i]] specifies the vertical offset between the bottom-right luma sample of the reference region on the reference picture with nuh_layer_id equal to scaled_ref_layer_id[i] and the bottom-right luma sample of the reference picture in units of RefLayerSubHeightC luma samples. When not present, the value of ref_layer_bottom_offset[ref_layer_id[i]] is inferred to be equal to 0.

ref_layer_horizontal_phase[ref_layer_id[i]] specifies the horizontal luma offset between nuh_layer_id equal to ref_layer_id[i] and the current picture in units of ¼ luma samples. This is an unsigned value with 2 bits. When not present, the value of ref_layer_horizontal_phase[ref_layer_id[i]] is inferred to be equal to 0.

ref_layer_vertical_phase[ref_layer_id[i]] specifies the vertical luma offset between nuh_layer_id equal to ref_layer_id[i] and the current picture in units of ¼ luma samples. This is an unsigned value with 2 bits. When not present, the value of ref_layer_vertical_phase[ref_layer_id[i]] is inferred to be equal to 0.

ref_layer_horizontal_chroma_position[ref_layer_id[i]] specifies the horizontal offset between the chroma samples and luma samples in nuh_layer_id equal to ref_layer_id[i] in units of ¼ luma samples. This is an unsigned value with 2 bits. When not present, the value of ref_layer_horizontal_chroma_position[ref_layer_id[i]] is inferred to be equal to 0.

ref_layer_vertical_chroma_position[ref_layer_id[i]] specifies the vertical offset between the chroma samples and luma samples in nuh_layer_id equal to ref_layer_id[i] in units of ¼ luma samples. This is an unsigned valu with 2 bits. When not present, the value of ref_layer_vertical_chroma_position[ref_layer_id[i]] is inferred to be equal to 2.

scaled_ref_layer_left_phase_chroma_position specifies the horizontal chroma offset relative to luma in units of ¼ luma samples. This is an unsigned value. When not present, the value of scaled_ref_layer_left_phase_chroma_postion is inferred to be equal to 0.

scaled_ref_layer_top_phase_chroma_position specifies the vertical chroma offset relative to luma in units of ¼ luma samples. This is an unsigned value. When not present, the value of scaled_ref_layer_top_phase_chroma_position is inferred to be equal to 2.

An example of the use of the syntax elements for determining the alignment between layers is given by the following calculations, where it is assumed that the scaled_ref_layer_id and the ref_layer_id of associated inter-layer picture are the same:

The variables ScaledRefLayerLeftOffset, ScaledRefLayerTopOffset, ScaledRefLayerRightOffset and ScaledRefLayerBottomOffset are derived as follows:

-   ScaledRefLayerLeftOffset=scaled_ref_layer_left_offset[rLId] *     SubWidthC -   ScaledRefLayerTopOffset=scaled_ref_layer_top_offset[rLId] *     SubHeightC -   ScaledRefLayerRightOffset=scaled_ref_layer_right_offset[rLId] *     SubWidthC -   ScaledRefLayerBottomOffset=scaled_ref_layer_bottom_offset[rLId] *     SubHeightC

The variables RefLayerLeftOffset, RefLayerTopOffset, RefLayerRightOffset and RefLayerBottomOffset are derived as follows:

-   RefLayerLeftOffset=ref_layer_left_offset[rLId] * RefLayerSubWidthC -   RefLayerTopOffset=ref_layer_top_offset[rLId] * RefLayerSubHeightC -   RefLayerRightOffset=ref _layer_right_offset[rLId] *     RefLayerSubWidthC -   RefLayerBottomOffset=ref_layer_bottom_offset[rLId] *     RefLayerSubHeightC

The variables ScaledRefLayerPicWidthInSamplesY and ScaledRefLayerPicHeightInSamplesY are derived as follows, where CurPicWidthInSamplesY and CurPicHeightInSamplesY are the width and height, respectively, of the current decoded picture in luma samples:

-   ScaledRefLayerPicWidthInSamplesY=CurPicWidthInSamplesY— -   ScaledRefLayerLeftOffset—ScaledRefLayerRightOffset -   ScaledRefLayerPicHeightInSamplesY=CurPicHeightInSamplesY— -   ScaledRefLayerTopOffset—ScaledRefLayerBottomOffset

In one embodiment, the variables RefLayerPicWidthInSamplesY and RefLayerPicHeightInSamplesY are the width and height, respectively, of the current decoded reference layer picture in luma samples, and variables RefLayerRefRegionWidthInSamplesY and RefLayerRefRegionHeightInSamplesY are the width and height, respectively, of the reference region on the decoded reference layer picture rlPic in units of luma samples, respectively, and are derived as follows:

RefLayerRegionWidthInSamplesY=RefLayerPicWidthInSamplesY—

RefLayerLeftOffset—RefLayerRightOffset RefLayerRegionHeightInSamplesY=RefLayerPicHeightInSamplesY—

RefLayerTopOffset—RefLayerBottomOffset

The variables ScaleFactorX and ScaleFactorY are derived as follows: ScaleFactorX=((RefLayerRefRegionWidthInSamplesY<<16)+

(ScaledRefLayerPicWidthInSamplesY>>1))/ScaledRefLayerPicWidthInSamplesY ScaleFactorY=((RefLayerRefRegionHeightInSamplesY<<16)+

(ScaledRefLayerPicHeightInSamplesY>>1))/ScaledRefLayerPicHeightInSamplesY

In order to provide finer alignment for luma and chroma, the following phase offset variables are determined:

The variables ScaledRefLayerLeftPhase, ScaledRefLayerTopPhase, RefLayerHorizontalPhase, RefLayerVerticalPhase, RefLayerHorizontalChromaPhase, and RefLayerVerticalChromaPhase are derived as follows:

-   ScaledRefLayerLeftPhase=scaled_ref_layer_leftphase[rLId] -   ScaledRefLayerTopPhase=scaled_ref_layer_top_phase[rLId] -   RefLayerHorizontalPhase=ref_layer_horizontal_phase[rLId] -   RefLayerVerticalPhase=ref layer vertical phase[rLId] -   RefLayerHorizontalChromaPhase=ref layer horizontal     chromaposition[rLId] -   RefLayerVerticalChromaPhase=ref layer vertical chromaposition[rLId]

The variables offsetX and offsetY are derived as follows:

offsetX=ScaledRefLayerLeftOffset/((cldx==0) ? 1 : SubWidthC)

offsetY=ScaledRefLayerTopOffset/((cldx==0) ? 1 : SubHeightC)

The variables addX and addY, deltaX and deltaY are derived as follows, where cIdx indicates the color component index (e.g. cIdx=0 for luma, and cIdx=1 for chroma):

If cIdx is equal to 0, the following applies:

addX=(ScaleFactorX * ScaledRefLayerLeftPhase+1)>>1)

addY=(ScaleFactorY * ScaledRefLayerTopPhase+1)>>1)

deltaX=(RefLayerLeftOffset <<4)—RefLayerHorizontalPhase <<2

deltaY=(RefLayerTopOffset <<4)—RefLayerVerticalPhase <<2

Otherwise (cIdx is equal to 1), the following applies:

addX=(ScaleFactorX * (ScaledRefLayerLeftPhase <<1+

scaled_ref_layer_left_phase_chroma_position)+SubWidthC<<1)>>(1+SubWidthC)

addY=(ScaleFactorY * (ScaledRefLayerTopPhase <<1+

scaled_ref_layer_top_phase_chroma position)+SubHeightC<<1)>>(1+SubHeightC)

deltaX=((RefLayerLeftOffset<<2)—(RefLayerHorizontalPhase+

RefLayerHorizontalChromaPhase))<<(3—RefLayerSubWidthC)

deltaY=((RefLayerTopOffset<<2)—(RefLayerVerticalPhase+RefLayerVerticalChromaPhase))<<(3—RefLayerSubHeightC)

The variables xRef16 and yRef16 for specifying the corresponding alignment between the layers are derived as follows:

-   xRef16=(((xP-offsetX) * ScaleFactorX+addX+(1 <<11))>>12)+deltaX -   yRef16=(((yP-offsetY) * ScaleFactorY+addY+(1 <<11))>>12)+deltaY

In the equations above, offsetX and offsetY represent coarse components of the scaled reference alignment and addX and addY represent fine components.

The equations above for reference layer offsets deltaX and deltaY each have two components, a coarse component (e.g. RefLayerLeftOffset) and a fine component (e.g. RefLayerHorizontalPhase). It is possible to constrain these offsets to have only a coarse or fine component. In one embodiment, for example, setting RefLayerHorizontalPhase=0 and RefLayerVerticalPhase=0 for the cIdx=0 case results in the following equations for deltaX and deltaY:

deltaX=(RefLayerLeftOffset <<4)

deltaY=(RefLayerTopOffset <<4)

In one embodiment, for example, setting RefLayerHorizontalPhase=0, RefLayerHorizontalChromaPhase=0, RefLayerVerticalPhase 0, and RefLayerVerticalChromaPhase=0 for the cIdx=1 case yields the following equations for deltaX and deltaY:

deltaX=(RefLayerLeftOffset <<2) <<(3—RefLayerSubWidthC)

deltaY=(RefLayerTopOffset <<2) <<(3—RefLayerSubHeightC)

FIGS. 5A, 5B, and 5C show a flow chart illustrating one example of a method 500 for coding scalable video. The method disclosed herein is applicable to both encoders and decoders. In the case of an encoder, the encoder would signal (e.g. transmit or write to bitstream), and in the case of a decoder, the decoder would parse the bitstream to determine the syntax element.

At block 501 within the Picture Parameter set RBSP syntax, determine if the pps_extension_flag is set. At 502, the PPS multilayer extension flag is read or examined to determine if the pps_multilayer_extension should be parsed. In some cases, for example, when using an encoder, this step is referred to as signaling. It is understood that in the case of an encoder or encoding, the corresponding encoder-appropriate terminology is assumed. At 503, if pps_extension_type_flag[1] is set, specifying that the pps_multilayer_extension syntax structure is present, the method proceeds 504 to the pps_multilayer_extension and the rest of the steps after 503 are processed.

At block 505, ref_layer_id rLId is determined. Continuing to block 506, scaled_ref_layer_left_offset is determined. At block 507, scaled_ref_layer_top_offset is determined. Next, at block 508, scaled_ref_layer_right_offset is determined.

At block 509, scaled_ref_layer_bottom_offset is determined.

At block 511, scaled_ref_layer_left_phase is determined.

At block 513, scaled_ref_layer_top_phase is determined.

At block 515, scaled_ref_layer_left_phase_chroma_position is determined.

At block 517, scaled_ref_layer_top_phase_chroma_position is determined.

Next, at block 520, scaled reference layer offsets are determined using:

ScaledRefLayerLeftOffset=scaled_ref_layer_left_offset[rLId] * SubWidthC

ScaledRefLayerTopOffset=scaled_ref_layer_top_offset[rLId] * SubHeightC

ScaledRefLayerRightOffset=scaled_ref_layer_right_offset[rLId] * SubWidthC

ScaledRefLayerBottomOffset=scaled_ref_layer_bottom_offset[rLId] * SubHeightC

ScaledRefLayerLeftPhase=scaled_ref_layer_left_phase[rLId]

ScaledRefLayerTopPhase=scaled_ref_layer_top_phase[rLId]

At block 522, ref_layer_left_offset is determined.

At block 524, ref_layer_top_offset is determined.

At block 526, ref_layer_right_offset is determined.

At block 528, ref_layer_bottom_offset is determined.

At block 530, Determine reference layer offsets:

RefLayerLeftOffset=ref_layer_left_offset[rLId] * RefLayerSubWidthC

RefLayerTopOffset=ref_layer_top_offset[rLId] * RefLayerSubHeightC

RefLayerRightOffset=ref_layer_right_offset[rLId] * RefLayerSubWidthC

RefLayerBottomOffset=ref_layer_bottom_offset[rLId] * RefLayerSubHeightC

At block 532, Determine:

ScaledRefLayerPicWidthInSamplesY=CurPicWidthInSamplesY—

ScaledRefLayerLeftOffset—ScaledRefLayerRightOffset

ScaledRefLayerPicHeightInSamplesY=CurPicHeightInSamplesY—

ScaledRefLayerTopOffset—ScaledRefLayerBottomOffset

At block 534, Determine:

RefLayerRegionWidthInSamplesY=RefLayerPicWidthInSamplesY

RefLayerLeftOffset—RefLayerRightOffset

RefLayerRegionHeightInSamplesY=RefLayerPicHeightInSamplesY

RefLayerTopOffset—RefLayerBottomOffset

At block 536, Determine:

ScaleFactorX ((RefLayerRefRegionWidthInSamplesY <<16)+(ScaledRefLayerPicWidthInSamplesY>>1))

ScaledRefLayerPicWidthInSamplesY

ScaleFactorY=((RefLayerRefRegionHeightInSamplesY <<16)+(ScaledRefLayerPicHeightInSamplesY>>1)) ScaledRefLayerPicHeightInSamplesY

At block 538, ref_layer_horizontal_phase is determined

At block 540, ref_layer_vertical_phase is determined.

At block 542, ref_layer_horizontal_chroma_position is determined.

At block 544, ref_layer_vertical_chroma_position is determined.

At block 546, determine reference layer phase offsets using:

RefLayerHorizontalPhase=ref_layer_horizontal_phase[rLId]

RefLayerVerticalPhase=ref_layer_vertical_phase[rLId]

RefLayerHorizontalChromaPhase=ref_layer_horizontal_chroma_position[rLId]

RefLayerVerticalChromaPhase=ref_layer_vertical_chroma_position[rLId]

At block 548, Determine scaled reference layer offsets (coarse) using:

-   offsetX=ScaledRefLayerLeftOffset/((cldx==0) ? 1: SubWidthC) -   offsetY=ScaledRefLayerTopOffset/((cldx==0) ? 1: SubHeightC)

At block 555, determine if cldx is equal to 0, and if so, then:

At block 560, determine (fine scaled reference layer, and coarse/fine reference layer) using:

addX=(ScaleFactorX*ScaledRefLayerLeftPhase+1) >>1) addY=(ScaleFactorY*ScaledRefLayerTopPhase+1) >>1)

deltaX=(RefLayerLeftOffset <<4)—RefLayerHorizontalPhase <<2 deltaY=(RefLayerTopOffset <<4)—RefLayerVerticalPhase <<2

Otherwise, determine if cIdx is not equal to 0 , (cIdx is equal to 1), advance to block 562, and determine (fine scaled reference layer, and coarse/fine reference layer):

addX=(ScaleFactorX * (ScaledRefLayerLeftPhase <<1+scaled_ref_layer_left_phase_chroma_position)+SubWidthC<<1) >>(1+SubWidthC) addY ScaleFactorY (ScaledRefLayerTopPhase <<1+scaled_ref_layer_top_phase_chroma_position)+SubHeightC<<1) >>(1+SubHeightC)

deltaX=((RefLayerLeftOffset <<2)—(RefLayerHorizontalPhase+RefLayerHorizontalChromaPhase)) <<(3—RefLayerSubWidthC) deltaY=((RefLayerTopOffset <<2)—(RefLayerVerticalPhase RefLayerVerticalChromaPhase)) <<(3—RefLayerSubHeightC)

continuing on to block 564, determine:

-   xRef16=(((xP-offsetX) * ScaleFactorX+addX+(1 <<11)) >>12)+deltaX -   yRef16=(((yP-offsetY) * ScaleFactorY+addY+(1 <<11)) >>12)+deltaY

Finally, at block 566, provide xRef16 and yRef16 for use in selecting filters and input samples, for example in FIG. 3.

Illustrative Operating Environment

FIG. 6 is a simplified block diagram that illustrates an example video coding system 10 that may utilize the techniques of this disclosure. As used described herein, the term “video coder” can refer to either or both video encoders and video decoders. In this disclosure, the terms “video coding” or “coding” may refer to video encoding and video decoding.

As shown in FIG. 6, video coding system 10 includes a source device 12 and a destination device 14. Source device 12 generates encoded video data. Accordingly, source device 12 may be referred to as a video encoding device. Destination device 14 may decode the encoded video data generated by source device 12. Accordingly, destination device 14 may be referred to as a video decoding device. Source device 12 and destination device 14 may be examples of video coding devices.

Destination device 14 may receive encoded video data from source device 12 via a channel 16. Channel 16 may comprise a type of medium or device capable of moving the encoded video data from source device 12 to destination device 14. In one example, channel 16 may comprise a communication medium that enables source device 12 to transmit encoded video data directly to destination device 14 in real-time.

In this example, source device 12 may modulate the encoded video data according to a communication standard, such as a wireless communication protocol, and may transmit the modulated video data to destination device 14. The communication medium may comprise a wireless or wired communication medium, such as a radio frequency (RF) spectrum or one or more physical transmission lines. The communication medium may form part of a packet-based network, such as a local area network, a wide-area network, or a global network such as the Internet. The communication medium may include routers, switches, base stations, or other equipment that facilitates communication from source device 12 to destination device 14. In another example, channel 16 may correspond to a storage medium that stores the encoded video data generated by source device 12.

In the example of FIG. 6, source device 12 includes a video source 18, video encoder 20, and an output interface 22. In some cases, output interface 22 may include a modulator/demodulator (modem) and/or a transmitter. In source device 12, video source 18 may include a source such as a video capture device, e.g., a video camera, a video archive containing previously captured video data, a video feed interface to receive video data. from a video content provider, and/or a computer graphics system for generating video data, or a combination of such sources.

Video encoder 20 may encode the captured, pre-captured, or computer-generated video data. The encoded video data may be transmitted directly to destination device 14 via output interface 22 of source device 12. The encoded video data may also be stored onto a storage medium or a file server for later access by destination device 14 for decoding and/or playback.

In the example of FIG. 6, destination device 14 includes an input interface 28, a video decoder 30, and a display device 32. In some cases, input interface 28 may include a receiver and/or a modem. Input interface 28 of destination device 14 receives encoded video data over channel 16. The encoded video data may include a variety of syntax elements generated by video encoder 20 that represent the video data. Such syntax elements may be included with the encoded video data transmitted on a communication medium, stored on a storage medium, or stored a file server.

Display device 32 may be integrated with or may be external to destination device 14. In some examples, destination device 14 may include an integrated display device and may also be configured to interface with an external display device. In other examples, destination device 14 may be a display device. In general, display device 32 displays the decoded video data to a user.

Video encoder 20 includes a resampling module 25 which may be configured to code (e.g., encode) video data in a scalable video coding scheme that defines at least one base layer and at least one enhancement layer. Resampling module 25 may resample at least some video data as part of an encoding process, wherein resampling may be performed in an adaptive manner using resampling filters. Likewise, video decoder 30 may also include a resampling module 35 similar to the resampling module 25 employed in the video encoder 20.

Video encoder 20 and video decoder 30 may operate according to a video compression standard, such as the High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) standard. The HEVC standard is being developed by the Joint Collaborative Team on Video Coding (JCT-VC) of ITU-T Video Coding Experts Group (VCEG) and ISO/IEC Motion Picture Experts Group (MPEG). A recent draft of the HEVC standard is described in Recommendation ITU-T H.265|International Standard ISO/IEC 23008-2, High efficiency video coding, version 2, Oct. 2014.

Additionally or alternatively, video encoder 20 and video decoder 30 may operate according to other proprietary or industry standards, such as the ITU-T H.264 standard, alternatively referred to as MPEG-4, Part 10, Advanced Video Coding (AVC), or extensions of such standards. The techniques of this disclosure, however, are not limited to any particular coding standard or technique. Other examples of video compression standards and techniques include MPEG-2, ITU-T H.263 and proprietary or open source compression formats and related formats.

Video encoder 20 and video decoder 30 may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware or any combination thereof. For example, the video encoder 20 and decoder 30 may employ one or more processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), discrete logic, or any combinations thereof. When the video encoder 20 and decoder 30 are implemented partially in software, a device may store instructions for the software in a suitable, non-transitory computer-readable storage medium and may execute the instructions in hardware using one or more processors to perform the techniques of this disclosure. Each of video encoder 20 and video decoder 30 may be included in one or more encoders or decoders, either of which may be integrated as part of a combined encoder/decoder (CODEC) in a respective device.

Aspects of the subject matter described herein may be described in the general context of computer-executable instructions, such as program modules, being executed by a computer. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, objects, components, data structures, and so forth, which perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. Aspects of the subject matter described herein may also be practiced in distributed computing environments where tasks are performed by remote processing devices that are linked through a communications network. In a distributed computing environment, program modules may be located in both local and remote computer storage media including memory storage devices.

Also, it is noted that some embodiments have been described as a process which is depicted as a flow diagram or block diagram. Although each may describe the operations as a sequential process, many of the operations can be performed in parallel or concurrently. In addition, the order of the operations may be rearrange& A process may have additional steps not included in the figure.

Particular embodiments may be implemented in a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium for use by or in connection with the instruction execution system, apparatus, system, or machine. The computer-readable storage medium contains instructions for controlling a computer system to perform a method described by particular embodiments. The computer system may include one or more computing devices. The instructions,when executed by one or more computer processors, may be configured to perform that which is described in particular embodiments.

Although the subject matter has been described in language specific to structural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understood that the subject matter defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above. 

1-13. (canceled)
 14. An apparatus for at least one of encoding and decoding scalable video transported in a bitstream, the bitstream comprising a first coding layer associated with a base resolution and a second coding layer associated with an enhanced resolution higher than that of the base layer, the apparatus comprising a processor that: manipulates the bitstream to determine a picture-level offset parameter specifying an offset between a reference luma sample at a defined location in a reference picture and a target luma sample at a corresponding location in a current picture, the offset having a first property specifying a selected one of a plurality of predefined directions for the offset and a second property specifying the defined location; and uses the determined offset parameter to derive pixel values of the current picture using pixel values of the reference picture.
 15. The apparatus of claim 14 comprising an encoder, where the offset parameter is determined when the processor manipulates the bitstream by encoding the offset parameter into the bitstream.
 16. The apparatus of claim 14 comprising a decoder, where the offset parameter is determined when the processor manipulates the bitstream by parsing it to read the offset parameter.
 17. The apparatus of claim 14 where the offset parameter specifies a horizontal offset between a top-left luma sample of the reference picture and a top-left luma sample of the current picture.
 18. The apparatus of claim 14 where the offset parameter specifies a vertical offset between a top-left luma sample of the reference picture and a top-left luma sample of the current picture.
 19. The apparatus of claim 14 where the offset parameter specifies a horizontal offset between a bottom-right luma sample of the reference picture and a bottom-right luma sample of the current picture.
 20. The apparatus of claim 14 where the offset parameter specifies a vertical offset between a bottom-right luma sample of the reference picture and a bottom-right luma sample of the current picture.
 21. The apparatus of claim 14, where the offset parameter is signaled in a pps_multilayer_extension syntax.
 22. A method for at least one of encoding and decoding scalable video transported in a bitstream, the bitstream comprising a first coding layer associated with a base resolution and a second coding layer associated with an enhanced resolution higher than that of the base layer, the method comprising: manipulating the bitstream to determine a picture-level offset parameter specifying an offset between a reference luma sample at a defined location in a reference picture and a target luma sample at a corresponding location in a current picture, the offset having a first property specifying a selected one of a plurality of predefined directions for the offset and a second property specifying the defined location; and using the determined offset parameter to derive pixel values of the current picture based on pixel values of the reference picture.
 23. The method of claim 22, where the offset parameter is determined by manipulating the bitstream to encode the offset parameter into the bitstream.
 24. The method of claim 22, where the offset parameter is determined by parsing the bitstream to read the offset parameter.
 25. The method of claim 22 where the offset parameter specifies a horizontal offset between a top-left luma sample of the reference picture and a top-left luma sample of the current picture.
 26. The method of claim 22 where the offset parameter specifies a vertical offset between a top-left luma sample of the reference picture and a top-left luma sample of the current picture.
 27. The method of claim 22 where the offset parameter specifies a horizontal offset between a bottom-right luma sample of the reference picture and a bottom-right luma sample of the current picture.
 28. The method of claim 22 where the offset parameter specifies a vertical offset between a bottom-right luma sample of the reference picture and a bottom-right luma sample of the current picture.
 29. The method of claim 22, where the offset parameter is signaled in a pps_multilayer_extension syntax. 